The Scarecrow Returns
Summary Teaser William Boone enters St. Michael's and heads to the secret entrance to the Liberation's "Lair." There, he finds Sahjit Jinnah working on the Scarecrow Probe. Sahjit introduces Boone to his girlfriend, a fellow scientist, Rayna Armitraj. Sahjit says that the couple met as students in Paris. When Rayna drills into the probe there is a brief power fluctuation and then the probe emits a beam of energy which absorbs Rayna. Act One In the Lair, Boone conferences with Jonathan Doors, Lili Marquette, Augur and Sahjit. Sahjit shows them images that the probe recorded in the Amish community of Paradise ("Float Like a Butterfly"). They have not been able to determine whether the images were transmitted to anyone. It is assumed that the probe is of Taelon origin and that it was sent to gather intelligence on Humanity. In Boone's office at the Federal Building he uses his CVI to remember the writing that James Pike did on his prison cell wall ("Avatar"). Boone wants to try to decipher writing discovered in the probe's systems. Ronald Sandoval arrives and tells Boone that Da'an wants to meet with them about the opening of the new Taelon Museum of Art. Sandoval reveals that he never learned the Taelon Language. Boone says his own studies are going well. Back in the Lair, Augur and Lili believe they have deciphered a series of numbers from the probe that may be the coordinates of its origin. Jonathan Doors orders them to keep working and find the exact location. At the Washington Headquarters, Da'an tells the artist Tiana that he is most grateful to be able to display her work in the new gallery. Sandoval comments that the stillness of Tiana's sculpture is moving. Boone advises Da'an that all security precautions for the gallery opening are in place. He then requests that he be tutored in the Taelon language. Da'an is reluctant but says that he will consider the request. In the Lair, the probe begins to enlarge itself, an opening appears and two Rayna Replicants step out. Act Two At the Taelon embassy in Washington, D.C., Da'an has agreed to help Boone learn the Taelon language. He is impressed by how Boone has already managed to teach himself the rudiments. Da'an shows Boone a Taelon story which Boone describes as being similar to The Tortoise and the Hare. Da'an explains that the Taelon language does not have grammatical rules like Earth languages do. Rather, the Taelons feel the language as they read or speak it. At the Lair, Augur informs Doors that he has traced the probe's origin to a system quite far away from the Taelon Homeworld. He explains that the probe may have been launched from an outpost or colony, or the coordinates may be a deliberate attempt to confuse anyone trying to track the origin. Doors offers that Augur's calculations might also be incorrect. Elsewhere in the Lair, Boone and Sahjit discuss communication with the probe. Sahjit has managed to replicate the light bursts used by the probe. Boone says he can identify the symbols in the probe but they are different from reading standard Taelon; perhaps another dialect? The probe's imperative seems to be to study other life forms under a variety of situations and life-threatening tolerances. It is only to use violent force if absolutely necessary. During this discussion, one of the Raynas touches the power source for the Lair and is disintegrated. The other Rayna is with Lili examining the probe. When everyone realizes there is more than one Rayna, the remaining one activates the probe and knocks Lili unconscious. A strong beam of light is emitted from the probe and leaves Earth, presumably sent to the point of origin. Act Three Sandoval informs Da'an that an unknown signal was detected leaving Earth. It is not of Human origin but it does not seem to be Taelon either. Da'an orders Sandoval and Boone to investigate. He contacts Qu'on who orders Da'an to personally work with the Humans to uncover the details. Aboard a Taelon Shuttle, Da'an and Sandoval head for the general area where the transmission originated. Da'an carries with him a piece of Taelon technology that he says he will need if they locate the source of the transmission. He refuses to give Sandoval any further information about it. As the shuttle closes in on the secret headquarters of the Liberation, Boone and Sahjit manage to destroy the second Rayna Replicant with an industrial laser. Once she is gone, the probe itself seems to dissolve into small particles which filter out through the ventilation system. Act Four Lili observes that the probe seems to be able to transform its shape. Meanwhile, Da'an and Sandoval are in a series of underground utility tunnels that are close to the Lair. Doors tells Lili that if Sandoval gets within 200 metres of thhem, he will destroy the Lair to prevent the Liberation from being compromised. Particles of the probe emerge from the ventilation system and smother a Technician, killing him. Sahjit's communication system will no longer work because the probe is not in its original form. He and Augur struggle to adjust the system to communicate with a flood of light rather than a focused beam. Boone creates a message to communicate with the probe. He will order it to seek out a source of deuterium. Jonathan Doors rushes to extract deuterium from the Lair's nuclear reactor so it can be placed outside to draw the probe away. Boone takes the deuterium out into the utility tunnels and the probe follows. The probe absorbs the deuterium and Sandoval and Da'an arrive. Da'an uses the device he brought to seal the top of the probe. Coda Lili tells Doors that she believes he acted rashly in considering destroying the Lair. She does not consider him the "commander" of the Liberation. She believes all members should be answerable to each other. Doors disagrees. In his mind, he finances the operation and it is his to command. Sahjit tells Boone he believes Rayna's unaltered DNA is still within the probe. He believes if he could access the probe he might be able to bring her back to life. Gallery File:Scarecrow_returns_01.jpg|Working on the Probe File:Scarecrow_returns_02.jpg|Rayna is Absorbed File:Scarecrow_returns_03.jpg|Art by Tiana File:Scarecrow_returns_04.jpg|Rayna Replicants File:Scarecrow_returns_05.jpg|Language Lesson File:Scarecrow_Returns_06.jpg|Rayna, No! File:Scarecrow_returns_07.jpg|It's Not Rayna File:Scarecrow_returns_08.jpg|I'll Destroy It File:Scarecrow_returns_09.jpg|Technician Attacked File:Scarecrow_returns_10.jpg|Seek Deuterium File:Scarecrow_returns_11.jpg|Do You Know How to Control It? File:Scarecrow_returns_12.jpg|Close Call Cast * Kevin Kilner as William Boone * Lisa Howard as Lili Marquette * Von Flores as Ronald Sandoval * Richard Chevolleau as Marcus 'Augur' Deveraux * David Hemblen as Jonathan Doors * Leni Parker as Da'an Guest Starring * Damon D'Oliveira as Sahjit Jinnah * Sonia Dhillon as Rayna Armitraj Other Cast * Pam Matthews as Tiana * Paul De La Rosa as Technician * Uncredited as Qu'on (voice) Trivia * This episode features archive footage from "Float Like a Butterfly," "Avatar" and "Decision." * Production values showed a number of minor increases starting from this episode: most notably, the Taelon embassy in Washington is shown in its entirety for the first time and Da'an's makeup has a more natural look. Da'an's head also appears slighty smaller, probably the result of better prosthetics. * Other changes that take effect starting with this episode include Augur talking with a lighter accent and Da'an no longer dropping his facade when talking to other Taelons. References * St. Michael's * Lair * Scarecrow Probe * Paradise * Paris * Taelon Shuttle * Federal Building * CVI * James Pike * Taelon Museum of Art * Washington Headquarters * Replicant * Taelon Language * Aur'al * Australia * The Tortoise and the Hare * Sceptre * Skrill * Global * Macintosh PowerBook * Kate Boone Category:Episodes Category:Episodes of Season One